Paris Hilton's 'Best Judge Forever' lets her off the hook

A Florida judge has ruled that Paris Hilton does not have to pay $8.3 million for avoiding promotion of the box office flop "National Lampoon's Pledge This!"

In the case, Judge Federico Moreno went to painstaking lengths to measure how Paris Hilton spends her day and whether she could have done more to provide "reasonable promotion and publicity services" for the film.

"Much time was spent on Paris Hilton's busy schedule, including how long it takes for Paris Hilton to do her hair (over 3 hours), whether she could promote 'Pledge This!' while visiting Japan and Austria to promote other products, or whether she should have spent Christmas with her family in Hawaii instead of promoting the movie," writes Judge Moreno in the opinion.

But the judge says the plaintiff— a court-appointed receiver assigned to collect debts from the 2006 stinker — didn't offer compelling evidence that Hilton's alleged contractual breaches caused "foreseeable damages," nor "could point to no actual contractual provision, and could proffer no specific testimony from anyone who actually decided to invest in the movie, that Ms. Hilton's prospective promotion of the DVD release, in particular, induced their investment."

Hilton isn't totally off the hook on this yet, however.

Judge Moreno says he hasn't decided yet whether to make Hilton give back her $1 million payment for the film and may have another oral hearing on that subject. Perhaps Moreno is using this as an excuse to again see Hilton, who famously declared he was her "best judge forever" during the trial.

A Florida judge has ruled that Paris Hilton does not have to pay $8.3 million for avoiding promotion of the box office flop "National Lampoon's Pledge This!"

In the case, Judge Federico Moreno went to painstaking lengths to measure how Paris Hilton spends her day and whether she could have done more to provide "reasonable promotion and publicity services" for the film.

"Much time was spent on Paris Hilton's busy schedule, including how long it takes for Paris Hilton to do her hair (over 3 hours), whether she could promote 'Pledge This!' while visiting Japan and Austria to promote other products, or whether she should have spent Christmas with her family in Hawaii instead of promoting the movie," writes Judge Moreno in the opinion.

But the judge says the plaintiff— a court-appointed receiver assigned to collect debts from the 2006 stinker — didn't offer compelling evidence that Hilton's alleged contractual breaches caused "foreseeable damages," nor "could point to no actual contractual provision, and could proffer no specific testimony from anyone who actually decided to invest in the movie, that Ms. Hilton's prospective promotion of the DVD release, in particular, induced their investment."

Hilton isn't totally off the hook on this yet, however.

Judge Moreno says he hasn't decided yet whether to make Hilton give back her $1 million payment for the film and may have another oral hearing on that subject. Perhaps Moreno is using this as an excuse to again see Hilton, who famously declared he was her "best judge forever" during the trial.

The Hollywood Reporter, Esq. blog focuses on how the entertainment and media industries are impacted and influenced by the law. It is edited by Matthew Belloni with contributions from veteran legal reporter Eriq Gardner and others. Before joining The Hollywood Reporter, Belloni was a lawyer at an entertainment litigation firm in Los Angeles. He writes a column for THR devoted to entertainment law. Gardner is a New York-based writer and legal journalist. Send tips or comments to Matthew.Belloni@thr.com

The Hollywood Reporter is Your Complete Film Resource

The columnists and bloggers who write for The Hollywood Reporter have their collective finger on the pulse of the boxoffice. Martin Grove and the other THR columnists deliver their thoughts on the film industry in an uncompromised style. Subscribe to THR today and get the latest views from these film experts and get the latest movie reviews as well.